Powering the Brand of Self

Published 04 April 2019

Anxious about securing their future in an uncertain world, today’s risk-averse yet agile teens swoon at promises of economic success. This angst is creating huge opportunities for brands that support side hustles and power up professional prowess. From transparent trading concepts and personal incubators to new-gen consumer-creator collisions; retailers become enablers for the 'brand of me' era.

iGen Outlook: Celebrating The Brand of Self

Supporting Side Hustles: Teen Traders

Monetising Mentorship: The Halo of Help

Finance for Micropreneurs

Nurturing New-Gen Consumer Collabs

Small-Screen Stars: Incubating Influencers

Today’s teens, a.k.a. iGen, are the first digital purebreds: an agile but also risk-averse group for whom a culture of individualism, even personal branding, is a default setting. What does this mean for brands? A huge opportunity to engage via platforms and services that celebrate the self, but only if it's underscored by reassurance and a sense of control.

While not necessarily reaching for the entrepreneurial stars like their ballsier, more narcissistic predecessors, Gen Z do believe in side hustles to supplement their studies and/or support future careers. Shrewd retailers are responding with micro trading and resales concepts – interactive e-platforms where brand fans can earn while playing shopkeeper. For most, honesty and authenticity are key to connecting.

According to British consumer psychologist Paul Marsden: “Gen Z is ambitious, but has performance issues; they need a Viagra for life.” From pathway-to-pro stores to boot camps that teach pitching skills, there’s a key, career-boosting-commerce opportunity in monetising mentorship – creating brand halos based not just on product, but also tangible help.

Innovative finance brands are backing small-scale teenpreneurs with bank accounts that take parental constraints out of the equation. For a generation that values control and dependability, it’s a vote of confidence (and a much-needed schooling in money management) that’s set to have major appeal. See also Platforms & Services Reborn in The Future of Money.

Consumer collaborations aren’t new (see Beta Brandscapes), but an evolved breed of collisions based around tapping into smaller ‘tribes’ are deepening brand-fan connections. From gaming to beauty, they’re fuelling Gen Z’s cherished sense of purpose by allowing them to express themselves artistically, intellectually, and in some cases, presenting semi-professional follow-up opportunities.

The influencer economy must shape-shift to resonate with Gen Z audiences, making in-brand incubators especially relevant. In Asia, where social media dominates e-tail spending (for Single’s Day 2017, six Alibaba-backed influencer brands were in the top 30 female apparel brands), live commerce will be key to feeding the consumer addiction. Meanwhile in Europe/US, a more socially positive understanding of their role and relevance is emerging.

Powering the Brand of Self

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Topics

Science & Technology

Brand Spaces

Ecommerce

Advertising & Branding

Retail

Gaming

Children & Youth

Social Media

Brand Experience

Influencers

Parenting & Families

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